Old ARMY Knife question ***Pic inside***

F

Figue

Joined
Feb 28, 2010
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Hey guys!! Long time lurker here with a old knife question. My cousin got handed down an old knife today that supposedly his father carried daily while serving as a Huey pilot in Vietnam. The knife is in pretty bad shape and is rusting away, i suppose the edge is gone too and the mount has to be weak from all the humidity.

Either way, he wants to restore it and bring that thing back to it's full luster. I need to know how to go about doing so and if possible some info about the blade and make and model of the unit. Him and me both are very curious to know more about this thing. Anddd he is gonna be needing a sheath too... ;)

Thanks guys!!!

Pic of the knife

f0a999a4.jpg


F.
 
Soap and a scrubby pad should get rid of the rust. Put some tape on the edge so you don't give yourself tetanus. Since it is rusting like that, it is probably a carbon steel or semi-stainless like D2. Once it is all cleaned up, you could apply mustard with a sponge. Let it sit 10 minutes, and you'll have a nice patina. Use an old toothbrush to get into those tight corners.

You could also do a series of sandpapers glued onto a piece of glass. Start coarse, work your way up to a high polish. If I was you though, I'd try the least invasive method first though, as you won't have to polish out scratch marks from the blade.

Cool looking knife.

As for sharpening, check out the search function. There are a bunch of great tutorials on sharpening :)
This one one of the first results
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...ing-video-is-up?highlight=sharpening+tutorial

You might also want to search for mousepad sharpening (easy convex grinds) or paper wheel sharpening for a ridiculous edge.
 
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Cool knife you got there. Perhaps if you could get a better picture of the markings on the blade and the handle.
 
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Definitely a dive knife, I'm not sure if it was ever issued...looks a little like the Scuba Pro logo on the handle. Rust looks fairly benign, you could probably get the steel cleaned up fairly nice w/ oiled up 0000 steel wool...I would just wash the handle with mild detergent and maybe a soft tooth brush. I'm guessing it might be a 420 or 440 series stainless.
What exactly does the logo on the handle say?
 
Why do people with zero experience in restoration think it's a good idea to practice on a knife with a story/history? Why do people thinks it's a good idea to remove the history and age from an item trying to make it pretty again? Here is my 2 cents: if you want a knife to use, buy a new one. Don't mess with and screw up a piece of history, especially if you have no experience in restoration. If you want "do something" to preserve it, clean it with soap and water, dry it off good and then put a light coat of mineral oil on it. Let the knife as well as you, tell it's story.
 
jimnolimit said:
Why do people with zero experience in restoration think it's a good idea to practice on a knife with a story/history? Why do people thinks it's a good idea to remove the history and age from an item trying to make it pretty again? Here is my 2 cents: if you want a knife to use, buy a new one. Don't mess with and screw up a piece of history, especially if you have no experience in restoration. If you want "do something" to preserve it, clean it with soap and water, dry it off good and then put a light coat of mineral oil on it. Let the knife as well as you, tell it's story.
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Maybe some people don't get any joy from just looking at a family heirloom, they want to use, and then they directly connect to their history, I personally have a watch from my great grandfather, still works, I had it Professionally restored, it's over 150 years old, I wear it occasionally, that's most of my enjoyment I get from it when wearing it.
 
Slider817 said:
Maybe some people don't get any joy from just looking at a family heirloom, they want to use, and then they directly connect to their history, I personally have a watch from my great grandfather, still works, I had it Professionally restored, it's over 150 years old, I wear it occasionally, that's most of my enjoyment I get from it when wearing it.
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The key word in your post is professionally restored and you treat it lightly to keep it that way. People ruin/damage antiques everyday by trying to restore items, items they have zero experience restoring. A knife that went through a war should look like it went through a war and it, along with it's story should be passed down, not erased by sandpaper and metal polish. If the OP wants a fixed blade to use regularly, I can recommend some that will cost $50 or less.
 
jimnolimit said:
Why do people with zero experience in restoration think it's a good idea to practice on a knife with a story/history? Why do people thinks it's a good idea to remove the history and age from an item trying to make it pretty again? Here is my 2 cents: if you want a knife to use, buy a new one. Don't mess with and screw up a piece of history, especially if you have no experience in restoration. If you want "do something" to preserve it, clean it with soap and water, dry it off good and then put a light coat of mineral oil on it. Let the knife as well as you, tell it's story.
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A M E N ,and plus 1 from here too.

Its a family heirloom and a great piece of history from one that will not be around forever.

If you want to flatter him,find another blade of the same age and play at fix up with that = might even find one that is minty and save his in a frame with his service stuff [ medals,ribbons etc ]
 
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